Poisoning suspected in DR Congo mystery illness: WHO

Poisoning is suspected in an unexplained outbreak of illness in western DR Congo, the World Health Organization said Friday.

The health scare is the latest to befall the poor central African country that has seen outbreaks including mpox, as well as deadly violence in its conflict-wracked east.

In the western province of Equateur, there have been nearly 1,100 illnesses and 60 deaths since the start of the year showing symptoms including fever, headaches, joint pain and body aches, according to the WHO.

The UN agency’s emergencies director Mike Ryan said an investigation was underway, but tests had been negative for hemorrhagic fevers such as Marburg and Ebola.

It “appears very much more like a toxic type event, either from a biologic perspective like meningitis or from chemical exposure,” Ryan told an online press conference.

Local authorities had indicated that “there is a very strong level of suspicion of a poisoning event” related to a water source in a village, he said.

“Clearly, at the center of this, it would appear that we have some kind of poisoning event,” he added.

Earlier this month, 158 cases and 58 deaths were reported in Equateur’s Basankusu zone, according to the WHO. Last week 141 more people fell ill in Basankusu, with no further deaths reported.

In the nearby Bolamba zone, 12 people fell ill last month, including eight deaths.

Unexplained deaths in southwest Democratic Republic of Congo in October-November last year were eventually put down to malaria and common respiratory infections, compounded by malnutrition.

The vast country is struggling with “significant set of deaths and disease caused by multiple agents in a vulnerable population,” Ryan said.

He lamented that the world only seemed to pay attention when there seemed to be a threat that could spread beyond DR Congo.

“Once we establish that it’s not some major new Earth-killing virus, we all lose interest,” he said.

An armed group that UN experts say are backed by Rwanda has seized control of several cities in eastern DR Congo, raising fears of spiraling health crisis in an area where the deadly clade 1b variant of mpox emerged in 2023.

© 2025 AFP

Poisoning is suspected in an unexplained outbreak of illness in western DR Congo, the World Health Organization said Friday.

The health scare is the latest to befall the poor central African country that has seen outbreaks including mpox, as well as deadly violence in its conflict-wracked east.

In the western province of Equateur, there have been nearly 1,100 illnesses and 60 deaths since the start of the year showing symptoms including fever, headaches, joint pain and body aches, according to the WHO.

The UN agency’s emergencies director Mike Ryan said an investigation was underway, but tests had been negative for hemorrhagic fevers such as Marburg and Ebola.

It “appears very much more like a toxic type event, either from a biologic perspective like meningitis or from chemical exposure,” Ryan told an online press conference.

Local authorities had indicated that “there is a very strong level of suspicion of a poisoning event” related to a water source in a village, he said.

“Clearly, at the center of this, it would appear that we have some kind of poisoning event,” he added.

Earlier this month, 158 cases and 58 deaths were reported in Equateur’s Basankusu zone, according to the WHO. Last week 141 more people fell ill in Basankusu, with no further deaths reported.

In the nearby Bolamba zone, 12 people fell ill last month, including eight deaths.

Unexplained deaths in southwest Democratic Republic of Congo in October-November last year were eventually put down to malaria and common respiratory infections, compounded by malnutrition.

The vast country is struggling with “significant set of deaths and disease caused by multiple agents in a vulnerable population,” Ryan said.

He lamented that the world only seemed to pay attention when there seemed to be a threat that could spread beyond DR Congo.

“Once we establish that it’s not some major new Earth-killing virus, we all lose interest,” he said.

An armed group that UN experts say are backed by Rwanda has seized control of several cities in eastern DR Congo, raising fears of spiraling health crisis in an area where the deadly clade 1b variant of mpox emerged in 2023.

© 2025 AFP